During this observation, focus on how class begins. Where is your CT before class begins? What is he or she doing? Using the clock on the wall, determine when your CT establishes order and begins class. How did she/he start their lesson? How is homework from the previous night reviewed/collected/assessed? How does your CT engage students during the opening of the lesson? Is the approach your CT used during this lesson consistent with what you know about how students learn?
In my eighth grade science classroom, the beginning of class periods are very organized and structured. My cooperating teacher and the students within the classroom are doing some form of classroom work or are doing some type of task as the school bell rings. Prior to the class period beginning, my cooperating teacher is at the door of the classroom greeting students as they enter, monitoring student behavior within the hall way, as well as convening with other neighboring teachers at their respective doors. As students enter the science classroom, their everyday routine includes putting their books and other belongings at their respective desks, getting their "scientific notebooks" located at the back of the class, and then returning to their desks to write the classroom objectives of the day within the pages of their notebooks. As students enter the classroom, this process usually takes them a couple minutes into the class period to finish. As students are writing their classroom objectives for the day, my cooperating teacher is taking attendance to see who is present, absent, or tardy. After attendance is taken and students have completed writing in their scientists notebook, order is established by the cooperating teacher by getting students' attention. A lesson is started by the teacher either reviewing what was done in the previous class period or introducing a new topic. A new topic is usually introduced by a series of questions being posed to students to stimulate their higher order thinking. If there is homework to be checked, the cooperating teacher will go to each individual student to see if their assignment has been sufficiently completed and mark a grade in their grade book. In the instance that homework is to be collected, the cooperating teacher will collect it from each individual student.
These classroom practices used by teachers to begin a class period may seem to be standard procedure and the normal way of transitioning between a class period leaving and another class period entering, but it is extremely effective. Without performing the duties as described above, behavior of students in the hallways may be different, students would not be greeting as soon as they enter the classroom, and attaining classroom order at the beginning of a class period would be more difficult to achieve. These practices for beginning a class is quite consistent with the readings. I think a major component shared within the readings and what occurs within this science classroom is effective engagement to start a class period. This dialogue of asking questions that are either reviewing previous content or introducing new content gets students engaged with participation, focused on the content that is being discussed, and interested in the content. With engagement being very important to getting the class period off to a good start, the use of posing questions to students to stimulate their thought process will not only create engagement for the individual student who is speaking, but also the students around them when they are listening to their peers. Another element that aids in an effective beginning to a class period is having students completing a task when they enter a classroom as part of a daily routine. Having students working as the school bell is about to ring and the class beginning is extremely beneficial to the student and the teacher. As students are completing a task, teachers can take attendance and quickly get situated and prepared with whatever needs to be done before the opening of the lesson is done. Having students completing a task or working on a short assignment is one of the many practices I will incorporate into my own classroom in order to make the beginning of my class period be efficient for myself as well as the students.
In my eighth grade science classroom, the beginning of class periods are very organized and structured. My cooperating teacher and the students within the classroom are doing some form of classroom work or are doing some type of task as the school bell rings. Prior to the class period beginning, my cooperating teacher is at the door of the classroom greeting students as they enter, monitoring student behavior within the hall way, as well as convening with other neighboring teachers at their respective doors. As students enter the science classroom, their everyday routine includes putting their books and other belongings at their respective desks, getting their "scientific notebooks" located at the back of the class, and then returning to their desks to write the classroom objectives of the day within the pages of their notebooks. As students enter the classroom, this process usually takes them a couple minutes into the class period to finish. As students are writing their classroom objectives for the day, my cooperating teacher is taking attendance to see who is present, absent, or tardy. After attendance is taken and students have completed writing in their scientists notebook, order is established by the cooperating teacher by getting students' attention. A lesson is started by the teacher either reviewing what was done in the previous class period or introducing a new topic. A new topic is usually introduced by a series of questions being posed to students to stimulate their higher order thinking. If there is homework to be checked, the cooperating teacher will go to each individual student to see if their assignment has been sufficiently completed and mark a grade in their grade book. In the instance that homework is to be collected, the cooperating teacher will collect it from each individual student.
These classroom practices used by teachers to begin a class period may seem to be standard procedure and the normal way of transitioning between a class period leaving and another class period entering, but it is extremely effective. Without performing the duties as described above, behavior of students in the hallways may be different, students would not be greeting as soon as they enter the classroom, and attaining classroom order at the beginning of a class period would be more difficult to achieve. These practices for beginning a class is quite consistent with the readings. I think a major component shared within the readings and what occurs within this science classroom is effective engagement to start a class period. This dialogue of asking questions that are either reviewing previous content or introducing new content gets students engaged with participation, focused on the content that is being discussed, and interested in the content. With engagement being very important to getting the class period off to a good start, the use of posing questions to students to stimulate their thought process will not only create engagement for the individual student who is speaking, but also the students around them when they are listening to their peers. Another element that aids in an effective beginning to a class period is having students completing a task when they enter a classroom as part of a daily routine. Having students working as the school bell is about to ring and the class beginning is extremely beneficial to the student and the teacher. As students are completing a task, teachers can take attendance and quickly get situated and prepared with whatever needs to be done before the opening of the lesson is done. Having students completing a task or working on a short assignment is one of the many practices I will incorporate into my own classroom in order to make the beginning of my class period be efficient for myself as well as the students.